Deck 13: Participation

Question 1

Which statement accurately describes voting participation by today's eighteen-to-twenty-four-year-olds?​

A) ​They generally protest and refuse to register to vote.
B) ​They consistently vote at a lower rate than their older counterparts.
C) ​They have recently begun to vote in far fewer numbers than in years past.
D) ​They vote in about the same numbers as voters who are twice their age.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

In the context of voting, the practical effect of the grandfather clause was to​

A) ​permit African Americans to vote, as long as their family members had voted in a presidential election.
B) ​deny voting rights to African Americans, while maintaining the right of poor white citizens to vote.
C) ​provide a procedure for African Americans to follow, as long as they arrived early at the polling place.
D) ​deliver information to African Americans regarding upcoming votes, while maintaining a separate location for voting.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

​What precipitated Congress's efforts to lower the voting age from twenty-one to eighteen?

A) ​Civil rights protests regarding voter registration in the South
B) ​Student protests regarding Vietnam and the mandatory draft
C) ​The failure to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment
D) ​The Bay of Pigs incident and the escalation of the Cold War

Answer 3

B

Question 4

​Which of the following was not established in order to increase voter turnout?

A) ​Election day registration
B) ​Absentee voting
C) ​Voting by mail
D) ​Voter ID laws

Question 5

Which of the following groups is included in the voting eligible population?​

A) Seventeen-year-olds
B) ​Noncitizens
C) ​Non-registered voters
D) Prison inmates

Question 6

Which was the first state or territory to grant voting rights to women?​

A) ​Colorado
B) ​Wyoming Territory
C) ​Idaho
D) ​Utah Territory

Question 7

When the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was passed, it promised​

A) ​voting rights for men.
B) ​equal protection under the law.
C) ​voting rights for women.
D) ​equal access to polling places.

Question 8

What is the primary form of political participation in the United States?​

A) ​Voting
B) ​Signing a petition
C) Campaigning
D) Organizing a march

Question 9

Which of these was not a goal of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA)?​

A) To provide standardization of the mail registration process
B) ​To regulate the process by which state and local entities maintained their voting lists
C) To make opportunities to register available at certain state and local government offices
D) To advocate for passage of additional legislation to ensure that voting rights of women would continue

Question 10

​The 1965 Selma march was undertaken by civil rights advocates in order to

A) ​bring attention to unfair and unlawful voter registration practices.
B) ​introduce civil rights leaders to the local political community.
C) ​safely escort voter registrars to the state capital of Montgomery.
D) ​draw national attention to discriminatory housing practices in Selma.

Question 11

In the women's suffrage campaign, Alice Paul differed from many of her colleagues in that she advocated​

A) ​reform groups.
B) ​vigorous argument.
C) ​civil disobedience.
D) ​national conventions.

Question 12

What change was made to state constitutions regarding voting rights in the United States just after the War of 1812?​

A) ​The requirement of being male was eliminated.
B) ​The requirement of owning property was eliminated.
C) ​The requirement of being white was eliminated.
D) ​The requirement of registering to vote was eliminated.

Question 13

From the beginning, the fight for women's suffrage was​

A) ​universally admired.
B) immediately supported by the vast majority of Congress.
C) ​often opposed by both men and women.
D) supported by the eastern states, and strongly opposed in the western territories.

Question 14

What document created in the mid-1800s stated that "all men and women had been created equal"?​

A) ​The Fifteenth Amendment
B) ​The Declaration of Independence
C) ​The Fourteenth Amendment
D) ​The Declaration of Sentiments

Question 15

​In the 1812 election, approximately what percentage of the states chose presidential electors by popular vote?

A) ​15%
B) ​30%
C) ​50%
D) ​75%

Question 16

After the Civil War, African American men often did not vote, even after the passage of the Fifteenth Amendment, for all the following reasons except

A) ​an ongoing congressional dispute negated the federal validity of the amendment.
B) ​states had passed their own restrictive voting laws.
C) ​a climate of violence existed in the Southern states, leading to suppressed voter turnout.
D) ​intimidation by vigilante organizations was common when voting was attempted.

Question 17

Calculations based on the voting-age population usually rely on census data because census data is

A) ​an accurate estimate of the number of people in a population.
B) a reliable measure of the population ineligible to vote.​
C) ​a clear computation of the number who have voted in the past.
D) ​a solid gauge of the portion of the population born in this country.

Question 18

​Which statement about the Voting Rights Act is not accurate?

A) ​The law closely followed the language of the Fifteenth Amendment.
B) ​​The law prohibited literacy tests in any state in the country.
C) ​The law was developed during the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson.
D) ​The law has been challenged by very little litigation.

Question 19

​"The extent to which an individual pays attention to politics and understands what he or she has encountered" is the definition of political

A) impact.
B) behavior.
C) awareness.
D) participation.

Question 20

Which of the following best explains why the white primary was effective in accomplishing its goal?​

A) ​In the South, the poll tax was so high for primary elections that it was difficult to vote for those with very low incomes.
B) ​In the South, the Democratic primary election functioned like a general election as the Democratic Party was the predominant political force.
C) ​In the South, disenfranchisement was a direct and clear method of violating a constitutional amendment.
D) ​Literacy tests served to force voters to learn about candidates before they would be permitted to vote in the South.

Question 21

Research has shown that when implemented on its own, early voting resulted in​

A) ​doubled voter turnout.
B) more independent voter turnout.
C) ​decreased voter turnout.
D) escalating youth voter turnout.

Question 22

When an American casts a vote in a presidential election, the voter is not actually​

A) ​casting a valid ballot.
B) ​electing a president.
C) ​selecting electors.
D) ​exercising a right.

Question 23

Which statement about voter turnout over the past fifty years is not accurate?​

A) ​Women are more likely to vote than men.
B) ​Higher education levels tend to increase voter turnout.
C) ​Whites are less likely to vote than members of other ethnic groups.
D) ​Wealthy people vote at higher rates than people of lower socioeconomic status.

Question 24

________ is one of the best predictors of ​future voting behaviors.

A) ​Prior voting
B) Party affiliation
C) Geographic location
D) Gender

Question 25

Which statement accurately describes voter turnout in the 2012 presidential election, the election in which Barack Obama was elected to a second presidential term?​

A) ​There was a rise in black turnout in this election for the first time in history.
B) ​The election contributed to the widening of a longstanding black-white turnout gap.
C) ​The turnout of Hispanic voters for this election was below that of whites and blacks.
D) ​The turnout of Hispanic voters for this election rose above the Hispanic turnout rate of 2008.

Question 26

​What is the predominant voting system in Western Europe?

A) ​Mixed
B) ​Majoritarian
C) ​Plurality-majority
D) ​Proportional representation

Question 27

How many electoral votes are required to win the presidency in the United States?​

A) ​50
B) ​145
C) ​270
D) ​330

Question 28

What is civic duty, which often causes people to vote, even in adverse conditions?​

A) ​The moral obligation a person might feel to participate in politics
B) ​The unexpected behavior a person might show in preparing to vote
C) ​The desire a person might have to avoid being perceived as a nonvoter
D) The educational level a person might attain to become knowledgeable about politics

Question 29

​Which of the following is an argument advanced by opponents of compulsory voting?

A) ​It is inconsistent with the freedom associated with democracy.
B) ​It fails to educate those who are not politically active or aware.
C) ​It shows that decisions made by elected governments are more legitimate.
D) ​It illustrates that choosing officials has a civic effect on citizens.

Question 30

How does Canada's voter registration system differ from the voter registration system in the United States?​

A) ​Voters are listed by name on the voting rolls in Canada.
B) ​Voters are added to the voting rolls in Canada at the age of eighteen.
C) Voters are added to the voting rolls after they register to vote in Canada.
D) ​Voters in Canada are permitted to move from one area to another without re-registering.

Question 31

In a 2009 survey, what percentage of eligible citizens in Canada and in the United States stated that they voted?​

A) ​82% of Canadians and 36% of Americans
B) ​74% of Americans and 55% of Canadians
C) ​93% of Canadians and 68% of Americans
D) ​50% of Americans and 48% of Canadians

Question 32

Which voting system is in place in the United States?

A) Majoritarian
B) ​Absolute majority
C) ​Proportional representation
D) Mixed

Question 33

All of the following are distractions that keep people from voting in a U.S. presidential election except people

A) are often working.
B) must often find childcare.
C) often have school commitments.
D) often prefer to relax on the weekend.

Question 34

The term voting-age population (VAP) refers to​

A) formulas required to calculate turnout rates in the United States.​
B) ​lists of requirements for voter eligibility in the United States.
C) ​strategies for mobilizing eighteen-to twenty-four-year-old voters in the United States.
D) ​people who are older than eighteen in the United States.

Question 35

Which statement best describes the impact of utilizing the voting eligible population (VEP) in calculating voter turnout?​

A) ​It provides a more accurate picture of those eligible to vote.
B) ​While it provides a picture of those eligible to vote, it has been deemed difficult to use.
C) ​It provides an extremely complex picture of those eligible to vote.
D) ​While it provides a picture of those eligible to vote, experts state that it is rarely used.

Question 36

Which of the following is true in regard to the federal voting system in the United States?​

A) ​Voting is compulsory.
B) ​A win in an election is achieved through a plurality of the votes.
C) ​Voter registration is unimportant.
D) ​Majoritarian and proportional voting formulas are applied in different electoral tiers.

Question 37

Which is an example of conventional political participation?​

A) ​The Occupy movement
B) ​Petitioning
C) ​The Boston Tea Party
D) ​Boycotts

Question 38

​Overall, which term best describes calculating voter turnout?

A) ​Fast
B) Complex
C) Simple
D) Impossible

Question 39

​Low voter turnout is least likely in

A) ​local elections.
B) ​national elections for the presidency.
C) ​primary elections.
D) ​off-year elections for state legislators.

Question 40

What is seen as an advantage of a proportional representation electoral system?

A) It provides better representation for racial minorities and women.
B) ​It lessens politicians' dependence on the party.
C) ​It establishes a non-partisan government.
D) ​It creates more voting opportunities for the average citizen.

Question 41

Which statement best describes the impact of social networking sites on political participation?

A) Social networking sites are seldom used in the political arena.
B) Social networking sites have increased political communication among young people.
C) Social networking sites are used by politicians, but not the general public, to discuss issues.
D) Social networking sites have decreased political participation among most age groups.

Question 42

The model developed by Verba, Schlozman, and Brady stresses all the following factors impacting the probability of political participation except​

A) ​resources.
B) ​traditions.
C) ​motivations.
D) ​opportunities.

Question 43

During the 1830s, what did Alexis de Tocqueville see as the key to the unprecedented ability to make democracy work in the United States?​

A) ​Generational discussions
B) Political values
C) Civic association
D) Religiosity

Question 44

​Which statement regarding the percentage of today's high school students who are civically involved is accurate?

A) ​The percentage has declined.
B) ​The percentage has increased.
C) ​The percentage has remained the same.
D) ​The percentage has been impossible to assess.

Question 45

Which of the following is not included as a primary predictor of political participation in the socioeconomic status (SES) model?​

A) ​Age
B) Income
C) ​Education
D) ​Employment

Question 46

​Which term is defined as "features of a social organization, such as networks, norms, and social trust, that promote coordination and cooperation for mutual benefit"?

A) ​Social capital
B) Social evidence
C) Social influence
D) ​Social distribution

Question 47

What term is defined as "mainly ceremonial acts expressing allegiance to government and country"?

A) ​Egalitarian behavior
B) ​Supportive behavior
C) ​Unconventional behavior
D) ​Persuasive behavior

Question 48

​Which of the following is not one of the three characteristics generally shared by people who participate in unconventional methods of political participation?

A) Distrust of the political system
B) Highly developed sense of group consciousness​
C) ​Strong sense of political efficacy
D) ​Desire to use representative channels of government

Question 49

​Which technique appears to be most effective in generating civic participation among high school students?

A) ​Publicize volunteer opportunities in the community
B) ​Increase the number of politically-oriented social networking sites
C) Facilitate and mobilize volunteer groups at school
D) Increase the visibility of local political parties

Question 50

Which is an example of a low-initiative act?​

A) Running for office
B) ​Organizing volunteers
C) Voting at the polls
D) ​Serving as a precinct leader